well, replaced the battery and hot wire to the starter, then wham - no power at all when I went to crank it. Like, everything just went DEAD.

Now, I walked away, came back, and my interior lights came on. I'm like wtf? Then I go to crank, everything dies once more.

So now I've pulled the hot wire from the starter, and have taken a closer look at the other two wires there. I'm seeing 3 cylinder type things inline on them, and I'm wondering if they are fusible links? Not only that, but could those 3 be preventing my car from starting?

As well, if I'm correct, how in the world do they get replaced?

 

You are correct those are fusable links.
I have no idea how to replace them.
Before I bought my car, the guy that previously owned it said they ran hard wires down to it *stupid idea*.

But I am sure you can just open up the link by twisting it and poping out the old fuse and putting in a new one.

If not cut the before and after the fuse link. Then get a link from a auto parts store, wire it in, tape it off, and put in a new fuse.
It may take a little extra time, but it will be worth it.

 

maybe its the selanoid?
Break out the circut testers!

 

dddeeeeerrrrrr....

Or maybe, hey... no... couldn't be. omfg. shoot me, please.

Word of advice - electrical systems work MUCH BETTER IF YOU TIGHTEN THE STUPID NEGATIVE CABLE.

Yeah, I'm a moron for today. I'm going to bed.

 

Welcome to the club

 

that made me feel better about myself
haha

 

Check your grounds, maybe replace the main negative cable off the battery.

As for replacing fusible links, you can't "open them and replace the fuse." The link itself is a "fuse". The rubber cylinder has a very thin wire in it that burns out when there's a problem. You can purchase replacement links, but finding the right rating is something I couldn't figure out. I simply replaced it with an in-line fuse holder, slap in a 20A fuse and its done. Make sure you use a waterproof fuse holder.

 

Usually fuseable links are used in situations where ordinary fuses would blow. A fuseable link is a "slow burn" compared to a regular fuse. A fuse might melt from a sudden load (like turning the heater fan from "off" to "high". But a fuseable link is designed to absorb the "sudden" draw. They take longer to melt than a fuse, and that's why they're used in certain applications (like the one I just mentioned)- because they can take a "surge".